Game visuals (Hand Drawn)

 

First image - Logo

 

Second image - Level 1

 

Third image - Level 2

 

 

 

The game is played by using the arrow keys/WASD to move your character and using the space bar to jump. The player is competing in the space Olympics in a number of different events. In each of these events, the player will find a number of obstacles in their way which they are going to have to jump over. The objective in each level is to finish above your competitors in whatever event you are competing in. The higher up in the rankings the player finishes in each event, the more points they will score towards the overall Olympic Games leader boards which will determine which competitor has come out on top in the Olympic Games.

Level 1 and Level 2 have been shown in the screenshots above and so has the logo. Level 1 takes place in outer space as we know it, being pitch black and littered with stars and planets throughout. The event in this level is a hurdle race, in which the player will have to jump over a series of hurdles and attempt to cross the finish line before anyone else.

Level 2 does take place in space, however, it takes place in an alternate universe where space is bright, but still contains planets and stars. The event featured in this level is the long jump, in which players can win the event by jumping the furthest.

The game has purposely been designed to have a silly and comedic feel, this appeals to my target audience as younger people will be attracted to the silliness as it echoes fun, which is what younger people are most drawn to. This game will also attract indie game enthusiasts as this game is an indie game to its core, which will make indie game lovers want to at least try it out.

 

 

 

D1

D1

It is always important to give yourself a sufficient amount of time to get a project complete, that is why I have decided to give myself 82 weeks to fully complete my game; Astronomical Sportsperson. To balance this 82 weeks out across the full development of the game, I have decided to create a Gantt chart. This Gantt chart shows exactly how much time I will need to be spending on each area of the game’s development which prevents me from going into developing the game without a planned schedule and missing the deadline for when the game needs to be released. For example, My Gantt chart shows that 10 weeks should be spent first doing research, 12 weeks should be spent on engine development and 5 weeks should be spent on testing. This is just to name a few areas however, it does still show how my Gantt chart is able to schedule every single task to ensure that the game will be released on time as well as showing specifically why my game is going to take 82 weeks to make. Other tasks my Gantt chart covers include; storyboards, concept art, character modelling, level design, game mechanics, artwork, music, sound, beta release, feedback analysis, bug patching and the release day.

Fortunately, the popularity of my game isn’t something that I need to worry about too much. This is because there has been a huge growth in the indie games’ market in recent years which has led to indie game marketplaces such as Steam being at the forefront of the game industry with many gamers opting to buy indie games from the steam market place instead of going out and buying themselves.

The release date for my game is going to be August. I believe this is the perfect month to release an indie game such as mine, this is because many huge franchises such as Call of Duty, Battlefield and FIFA choose to bring their games out between September and December so that their games can be in store for the coming Christmas which will massively boost their sales. This means that smaller games that come out around the same time period are often over looked by consumers due to the hype surrounding the up-coming triple AAA titles that year, which is why it is best for smaller indie games such as mine to release slightly earlier to reach maximum sale figures.

Before the game is released in August, I will have to make sure that all the legal and ethical issues that the game is going to face are taken care of to avoid any law suits cropping up once the game is released. The game will also have been tested multiple times which will massively reduce the number of bugs embedded within the game come lunch day. I will also be employing an effective marketing team who can market the game to consumers sufficiently before its release to generate hype for the game, this is important as few people are willing to buy a game unless people are talking about it.

P5 E

P5 E

There will undoubtedly be a number of legal/ethical issues when it comes to the creation of my game. Firstly, we would have to think about the games soundtrack and visuals. The song/s need to be made by the games development team or have the rights purchased from the owner/creator of the song/s to avoid any copyright claims. The visuals also have to be original and unique to this game so that other games cannot file a lawsuit against the development studio due to the visuals being too similar. On top of this the game engine used for the visuals also has to be properly purchased and licensed for the development of this particular game otherwise it would be classed as piracy which is breaking the law. Secondly, a lot of thought has to go into the title of the game. It has to be something original and cannot be ripped off another game without first discussing it with that game’s development team which in itself can waste a lot of time and resources which is why it’s always best to come up with a completely original name.

Secondly, the game has to comply with the restrictions that come with its age rating, for example if the game is to become a 3+ when it is released then adult content such as violence, sex and drugs cannot be included into any element of the game. This is due to the fact that young children are easily influenced by what they see in front of them so adult content such as the examples listed above cannot be shown to young children in case it has a profound influence on their psychological development. Furthermore, the game should reframe from offending any players who may be religious, have a physical deformity, struggle with substance abuse etc. This is so that players do not have to worry about the possibility of being offended whilst playing the game which can be the case with 18+ games such as the Grand Theft Auto series which has been heavily criticised for its offensive content.

P5 D

P5 D – Target Audience

The target audience for my game will be anyone who is interested in a casual gaming experience. This is because my game has no real storyline and exists purely for fun which makes it acceptable in the casual gamer culture. These people will be into third-person gameplay as this is the camera angle in which my game is played and they will also be into fast paced gameplay as my game is fairly fast paced. My target audience will also be into the free-to-play genre as this is one of the genres of my game as my game is free-to-play and will make money from small adverts included within the game and downloadable content (DLC).

The age of my target audience will most likely range between 10 – 18 years old, this is because the game is more likely to appear to a younger audience due to the jokey and childish nature of the game. For example, the game is jam packed with colour which would appeal to kids as multi-colours signify fun which appeals mostly to a younger audience. Furthermore; the world that the game is set in could be considered as ridiculous or bizarre which could also be considered a feature most liked by younger audiences as it keeps them on edge and feeling entertained.

P5 B

 P5 B

Planning and Design

For the planning and design stage we will have a team of people who will draw sketches for the game and do storyboards which will give us a form of structure to follow when it comes to actually creating the game. There will be a small team of around 6-8 people who will be working on the planning and design stage who will all have different roles to help create a well thought out and well-structured plan that can be applied to the games development. Key things that will need to be discussed in the planning and design stage include what the games colour scheme will be, who the main characters of the game will be and what they will look like, what gameplay style we should go for, how the game will fulfil the needs of our target audience etc.

Development

The development stage is arguable the most important stage of all, due to the fact that this is where what started out as an idea and a vision will be turned into a reality. My team made up mainly of people with a high standard of coding ability will then begin work on creating the game using their coding knowledge and applying it to Unity 3D (the software we will be using to create the game). One major difference when it comes to this stage is that the team I will be working with will most likely be much larger than the one used for the planning and design stage as there is a much wider spectrum of skills required for the development of a game. This also means that this stage will most likely take the longest out of all of them as there is simply so much work to be done when it comes to creating the game.

Characters

A lot of thought will have to go into the characters as in many ways characters can either make or break a game. Characters should be believable, entertaining and above all else likeable otherwise many players may be turned away if they find the characters bland or annoying.

Danny the Olympian – Danny is the main protagonist of the game and is the Olympian that players will play as.

Coach (Mike) – Mike is your trusty coach who will give you support and advice along the way.

AI Olympians – These are the competitors that you will be racing against through the duration of the Outer-Space Olympic Games.

Commentator “Space Dave” – Space Dave is the official commentator of the Outer-Space Olympic Games and will use a blend of comedy and wit to keep viewers entertained.

P5 A

Astronomical Sportsperson

 

Name: Jordan Moore

Candidate Number:

Centre Number:  34659

Format: I am going to be creating a game that will be the genre of my choice and will be released in the regions of my choice.

Working Title: The working title of my game is Astronomical Sportsperson. This is because it is a name that is unique and is therefore likely to stick in people’s heads; it also reveals a snippet of the comedy side of the game as the name is intentionally slightly ridiculous.

Genre: The genre of my game is 3D platform runner, this is because the game will be set in a 3-Dimensional world in which the player has to run across platforms in space whilst dodging and jumping over obstacles which stand in their way.

Content: The game will be set in an alternate universe space setting in which Olympians compete in outer-space contests. The universe in which the game is set in will include stars, planets, comets, asteroids etc. to give it an authentic space feel. The player will be running across brightly lit platforms which help give the game an element of vibrancy whilst also constantly being on the lookout for obstacles that block their way. The player can either choose to dodge or jump over these obstacles however, there will be times when all lanes are blocked up by obstacles acting as hurdles which will mean that the player has no choice but to jump over them.

Style or Approach: This game is going to be presented to the player with an extreme comedic edge. This is because the game is designed to be fun and ridiculous which makes comedy the very core of this game and is what makes the game so enjoyable to play. This game is also going to have a very vivid colour scheme with the platforms in which the player will find themselves running on being very brightly lit in a whole variety of different colour which adds to the fun and unique element of this game. The software I am going to use to create this game will be Unity as this is a free to use software that is perfect for creating 3D platform runners; giving game developers such as myself all of the necessary resources to make the game a reality. Special features of Unity include a 64-bit Editor, Fully Extendible Editor, Integrated Animation Editor and much more.

Audience: The audience for my game will be predominantly be male although there will still undoubtedly be some female fans. They will be generally between the ages of 10-25 as the game is designed to be fun for both kids and adults meaning both groups can play this game. These people will most likely be casual gamers who are just looking for a relaxing chilled out game to play although it is not out the question that some “hardcore” gamers will also stumble across my game. They will also be multi-ethnic as this game is not aimed towards just any one ethnicity allowing all ethnicities to play without getting the feeling that the game is discriminating against them.

Story/Narrative: In an alternate universe space setting in which Olympians compete in outer-space contests, Danny the Olympian will part-take in a number of running contests which will be hosted in outer-space such as the 100m sprint, hurdles and the long jump with a slight twist in the form of a shark pool. Danny’s ultimate aim is to win gold in the Outer-Space Olympic Games without being killed by the difficult and sometimes deadly obstacles that lay in his wake.

Characters: Danny the Olympian – Danny is the main protagonist of the game and is the Olympian that players will play as.   Coach (Mike) – Mike is your trusty coach who will give you support and advice along the way.   AI Olympians – These are the competitors that you will be racing against through the duration of the Outer-Space Olympic Games.   Commentator “Space Dave” – Space Dave is the official commentator of the Outer-Space Olympic Games and will use a blend of comedy and wit to keep viewers entertained.

Levels: The game will have a total of 12 levels in which each of the 3 events will be played 4 times with the AI getting increasingly harder each time you do the events. Once all the events/levels have been complete whoever is first in the leader boards will be crowned champion.

Gameplay: The player will be running across brightly lit platforms which help give the game an element of vibrancy whilst also constantly being on the lookout for obstacles that block their way. The player can either choose to dodge or jump over these obstacles however, there will be times when all lanes are blocked up by hurdles during the hurdle events which will mean that the player has no choice but to jump over them.

Control System: The game will use the traditional W, A, S, D key control system meaning only these four keys will be required to play the game. I have gone for this control system, as it is the most common in PC games meaning more players are likely to be familiar with the controls of my game.

Platform: PS4 – My game will be available on the PlayStation Store for purchase.   Xbox One – My game will be available on the Xbox Live Marketplace for purchase.   PC – My game will be available on Steam for PC gamers.   IPhone – My game will be available on the Apple App Store.   Android – My game will be available on the Play Store.